Friday, November 18, 2016

End of March, Beginning of April 2016

These cookies are my favorites - They are a banana, oatmeal, chocolate chip.  They are delicious.  The texture is so chewy almost like the top of a muffin.  YUMMMMM

Humidity = curls

It's crazy how curly she is

Video - Emmalyn singing the Jeopardy Theme Song.  We watch it each night so she's a pro!

Since coming home from Seattle, Maxwell keeps score just like Uncle Clay w/ everyone's initials.  This is the score sheet he put together for playing baseball. (Maxwell and Peter)

When Maxwell does Math that doesn't come quickly (like 9 plus 7) he will use this method - "9 in your head and 7 on your fingers" and then counts on his fingers to get the number. When he says the head part he hits his head.

He's reading his new chapter book - I love this series called "Hey Jack".  It's perfect for just starting to read chapter books.

Playing together

Maxwell dancing in his room while he watches the "whip n nae nae" song and learns the dance.  He's pretty cute when he does it.

Not happy to be in daddy's car because she has to still be in the rear facing infant seat.  At nearly 2, she's ready to be out of it.



He's all into reading right now.  I loved walking in and finding him like this on his bed.

A rare thing - Maxwell actually sitting in a swing instead of laying on it with his belly?!

We had a playdate with a few of Maxwell's friends from pre-school.  Joshua, Preston, and Lucas.  Maxwell played with them a little but more spend time playing by himself.  It's still good to see him engaging with friends a little though.


Sweet sleeping baby.  Note her hand tucked into her shirt?  Just like Maxwell used to do.

Peeking over our neighbor's fence.  We have a picture of Maxwell doing the same thing.

The weather is changing and swimming weather is getting closer.  Maxwell got into the hot tub next door for the first time this year.

Part of spring means it's time to plant flowers.  I had a great helper who not only helped me pick out the flowers but plant them too.  He loved his superman gloves.




Look at how long that hair is getting!

Spring days = time at the park


My little dare devil

So much personality and spunk


Our regular picture spot at school - I tried to get him to smile

He tickled himself in order to give me a genuine smile.

This week I registered Maxwell for Kindergarten.  Peter and I have really been struggling with deciding whether to send Maxwell to Kindergarten in the fall or hold him back.  Since he turns 5 so close to the cut off date, it wouldn't be uncommon to hold him back.  If he were to go to school, he'd turn 5 only 3 days before school starts.  He's already little for his age, he will certainly be little in his class because there will be kids in there that are already 6!  Here in Texas, you will find parents holding back their kids that turn 5 in May and June just so they will be bigger and do better in sports.

I worry though that if we hold Maxwell back it won't be fair to him intellectually since he's already so far ahead in that area.  It's hard to know what to do!  Sometimes I wonder if he's mature enough to move on (like when he barely plays with the other kids at the playdate.

Anyway, it's hard and we don't know what to do.  So, we registered him knowing that we can always change our mind and he doesn't have to go.  Then, at least, he can go if we want him to.  I can't believe he's old enough to go to school!

Video - Peter gets the best giggles out of Emmalyn.  She is so fun to play with.

Maxwell put together this course for him to practice his soccer skills with.


Watching Maxwell and the other kids in the pool.  I think I'm going to need to sign her up for lessons soon.  I don't want to have to get in the pool with her but it's clear she wants to be swimming too.

 
She is certainly starting to look more like toddler and less like baby.

She calls all her fingers "thumbs".  Her two bottom two-year molars are barely popping through.  She says "yes" with the cutest lisp so it sounds like "yeth".  She has crazy tantrums and is scratching now.  She will just SCREAM.  She purposely does things that she knows will upset Maxwell.  She won't let her "piggytails" stay in.  I even tried a trick that Ashlee taught me about twisting her hair around and that didn't stop her.  It's so frustrating because it is just a wild mess if it's not put up.

When she gets in her car seat, she HAS to buckle her chest strap by herself.  She can now JUMP! for real. :)


I got some new tennis shoes.  I went and got shoes fitted to my feet at a nice store in hopes that good shoes will help keep my pinched nerve from coming back.  It's been many many months since I've focused on walking/running and I feel like my foot is finally healed (which is good because at one point I was feeling like surgery would be my only option).  I will give these shoes a shot and start moving, hopefully with no pain!  These babies are a size 7.5!!  I was wearing like a 6 before I had kids.  

Wednesday, November 16, 2016

Seattle Day 4: Time to go home

We finished off our Seattle vacation with a bang - - or more accurately, a crack!  We smashed confetti eggs on each other outside.  :)

Maxwell posed to get Emmalyn





Confetti everywhere!



Lucky Konrad on clean up duty

After that, we headed to the airport to go home.

Score - got her to fall asleep again!


Rosy red cheeks post nap


Silly girl


Update on what the kids have been up to...
Emmalyn now says "butt head". I thought at first she didn't know what she was saying but no, she was calling names.
Emmalyn still puts her hand down my shirt.
She loved the stairs and the motorcycle when we were at Ashlee's. 
In the morning when I'm nursing her and have to stop to use the restroom, Emmalyn peppers me with questions when I come back.  She will ask if I washed my hands (she can smell it) by saying, "Wash hands Momma?" then "Soap?" and "towel?"  Girl is giving me the third degree!
She picks on her brother by touching the screen on his iPad or pushing him if he's next to her.
She hasn't gone potty in the potty again after that one time.
She sleeps with her pink puppy and her purple turtle on either side of her face each night when she goes to sleep.  
Often people will comment on how clear her talking is.
She is demanding!  And her tantrums have escalated to throwing things, flailing, and kicking. (Is she 2 years old yet???)
Emmalyn wants her binky all the time.  She got it a little more on vacation than she usually would.  Normally it would be during sleeping only.
Emmalyn asks for "cereal" and "malk" (Milk) every morning after asking for milk from me.  She will now say "cereal and malk in bowl" which means she wants it like you would typically eat cereal instead of getting a sippy cup with milk and some cereal in a sandwich bag.
In the morning she always asks about what Maxwell is doing.

Maxwell in still in 3t pants.
Max started learning multiplication in school this week (I had already taught him the 0s. He totally got the concept of that.) 

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Seattle Day 3: Easter 2016!

The Easter Bunny visited and had stuff for the kids even though we weren't at home

All the kids ready to go find their baskets and the eggs! Sam, Emmalyn, Maxwell, Kimber, Camryn, and Allison

Emmalyn has loved going up and down these stairs all day

You know how it goes...once she knows what's in the eggs it's hard to keep looking instead of opening.   :)



In Ashlee's house, the Easter Bunny not only hides eggs but he hides the baskets too - - Emmalyn found hers!!


Maxwell found his and was really excited about what was in there (a transformer, a toothbrush...)

Everyone looking through their stash

The aftermath

Maxwell's favorite thing to do is play PacMan.  He's getting better and really enjoying it.



Two cuties reading their books


Yummy pancake bunnies for breakfast.  Ashlee's so skilled in the kitchen... she whips up amazing desserts so quickly or does pancakes like it's nothing.  

With the kids all dressed up for Easter, we took some pictures outside with the pretty lake as a background.

(Ashlee lent Emmalyn these rain boots and she is obsessed with them and LOVES them.)



These cuties...what a blessing they are to our family!


Enjoying the trampoline



We went out for lunch and then went over to my Aunt Leanne and Uncle Clay's for dinner and the annual traditional Easter Egg Hunt!  I was excited for my kids to get to participate in this tradition that is so special to me.

Maxwell really loves being around Sam.

Happiness is seeing a big pile of shoes by this front door.

Maxwell had dinner at the kids table (and Peter and I got to eat with adults!!!).  It's great to be around so many kids.

Even Emmalyn had her own little spot (although I helped her eat a little bit).



My baby girl searching for the eggs.  She did great!

It was rainy and cold (Pretty typical) so they were all bundled up.

Maxwell searching





Emmalyn and her money from the eggs



Back in to warm up and dry off!

Uncle Clay taught Maxwell how to play Uno.  He got to play with the big kids.  Uncle Clay called Max "Maxwell Smart".  Maxwell would teasingly tell him that's not his name. He closely watched Clay keep score and so later when I played with Clay, Maxwell, and Sam,  Maxwell wanted to keep score and did a great job adding up the scores!! (great practice on that multi-digit addition)


The adults played games too

It's not a good picture but here's Max playing Uno with Uncle Clay.  He couldn't get enough once he got started.  It was the only thing he wanted to do and Clay was so kind to keep playing with him. 

Eventually they stopped playing and Maxwell went upstairs to watch a movie with the other little kids.  (We put Emmalyn down to sleep earlier.  We tried as much as possible to keep her going to bed early so that we wouldn't have to adjust when we got back to our time zone at home.)